Mertz had been serving as the chief operating officer since 2003, when the position was created at the company. The chief administrative officer is a newly created position that Mertz "is better suited for" and that will allow Mertz to focus on some of the things he had previously been doing as chief operating officer. As chief administrative officer, Mertz will be "dealing with the office space, insurance and accounting for JBC's operations," Buck says. "He is just going to concentrate on those duties." O'Donnell will have seven senior executives reporting to him, including Mertz. "He is going to really kind of revisit each person's business plan…with a focus on 2008, of course, and review their personnel lineup," Buck says.

The pair will be heading up the company as it is developing about $520 million of projects in the Chicagoland area and has three projects in New York City. A 470,000-sf, mixed-use development, called Clearwater, at 22nd Street and York Road in Oak Brook, IL is still in the planning stages, Buck says. The estimated $150-million project will have an Aloft Hotel, about 130,000 sf of retail space and 62 condominium units on an approximate 15-acre site. Construction will probably begin the second quarter of next year and take about 1.5 years to complete, he says.

Construction has already begun on the 1.1-million-sf tower at 155 N. Wacker Dr. The estimated cost of the project is about $370 million, Buck says. Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP has signed a lease for about 15% of the building. The project is currently about 19% preleased but Buck could not give information on any other tenants at this time. The project is expected to be completed in July 2009.